< איכה 3 >
| אני הגבר ראה עני בשבט עברתו׃ | 1 |
ALEPH. I am the man that sees poverty, through the rod of his wrath upon me.
| אותי נהג וילך חשך ולא אור׃ | 2 |
He has taken me, and led me away into darkness, and not [into] light.
| אך בי ישב יהפך ידו כל היום׃ | 3 |
Nay, against me has he turned his hand all the day.
| בלה בשרי ועורי שבר עצמותי׃ | 4 |
He has made old my flesh and my skin; he has broken my bones.
| בנה עלי ויקף ראש ותלאה׃ | 5 |
BETH. He has built against me, and compassed my head, and brought travail [upon me].
| במחשכים הושיבני כמתי עולם׃ | 6 |
He has set me in dark places, as them that have long been dead.
| גדר בעדי ולא אצא הכביד נחשתי׃ | 7 |
He has builded against me, and I cannot come forth: he has made my brazen [chain] heavy.
| גם כי אזעק ואשוע שתם תפלתי׃ | 8 |
GIMEL. Yea, [though] I cry and shout, he shuts out my prayer.
| גדר דרכי בגזית נתיבתי עוה׃ | 9 |
DALETH. He has built up my ways, he has hedged my paths;
| דב ארב הוא לי אריה במסתרים׃ | 10 |
he has troubled me, [as] a she-bear lying in wait: he is to me [as] a lion in secret places.
| דרכי סורר ויפשחני שמני שמם׃ | 11 |
He pursued [me] after I departed, and brought me to a stand: he has utterly ruined me.
| דרך קשתו ויציבני כמטרא לחץ׃ | 12 |
HE. He has bent his bow, and set me as a mark for the arrow.
| הביא בכליותי בני אשפתו׃ | 13 |
He has caused the arrows of his quiver to enter into my reins.
| הייתי שחק לכל עמי נגינתם כל היום׃ | 14 |
I became a laughing-stock to all my people; and their song all the day.
| השביעני במרורים הרוני לענה׃ | 15 |
VAU. He has filled me with bitterness, he has drenched me with gall.
| ויגרס בחצץ שני הכפישני באפר׃ | 16 |
And he has dashed out my teeth with gravel, he has fed me with ashes.
| ותזנח משלום נפשי נשיתי טובה׃ | 17 |
He has also removed my soul from peace: I forgot prosperity.
| ואמר אבד נצחי ותוחלתי מיהוה׃ | 18 |
Therefore my success has perished, and my hope from the Lord.
| זכר עניי ומרודי לענה וראש׃ | 19 |
ZAIN. I remembered by reason of my poverty, and because of persecution my bitterness and gall shall be remembered;
| זכור תזכור ותשיח עלי נפשי׃ | 20 |
and my soul shall meditate with me.
| זאת אשיב אל לבי על כן אוחיל׃ | 21 |
This will I lay up in my heart, therefore I will endure.
| חסדי יהוה כי לא תמנו כי לא כלו רחמיו׃ | 22 |
HETH. [It is] the mercies of the Lord, that he has not failed me, because his compassions are not exhausted. Pity [us], O Lord, early [every] month: for we are not brought to an end, because his compassions are not exhausted.
| חדשים לבקרים רבה אמונתך׃ | 23 |
[They are] new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.
| חלקי יהוה אמרה נפשי על כן אוחיל לו׃ | 24 |
The Lord is my portion, says my soul; therefore will I wait for him.
| טוב יהוה לקוו לנפש תדרשנו׃ | 25 |
TETH. The Lord is good to them that wait for him: the soul which shall seek him
| טוב ויחיל ודומם לתשועת יהוה׃ | 26 |
[is] good, and shall wait for, and quietly expect salvation of the Lord.
| טוב לגבר כי ישא על בנעוריו׃ | 27 |
TETH. [It is] good for a man when he bears a yoke in his youth.
| ישב בדד וידם כי נטל עליו׃ | 28 |
He will sit alone, and be silent, because he has borne [it] upon him.
| יתן בעפר פיהו אולי יש תקוה׃ | 29 |
| יתן למכהו לחי ישבע בחרפה׃ | 30 |
JOD. He will give [his] cheek to him that smites him: he will be filled full with reproaches.
| כי לא יזנח לעולם אדני׃ | 31 |
For the Lord will not reject for ever.
| כי אם הוגה ורחם כרב חסדו׃ | 32 |
CHAPH. For he that has brought down will pity, and [that] according to the abundance of his mercy.
| כי לא ענה מלבו ויגה בני איש׃ | 33 |
He has not answered [in anger] from his heart, though he has brought low the children of a man.
| לדכא תחת רגליו כל אסירי ארץ׃ | 34 |
LAMED. To bring down under his feet all the prisoners of the earth,
| להטות משפט גבר נגד פני עליון׃ | 35 |
to turn aside the judgment of a man before the face of the Most High,
| לעות אדם בריבו אדני לא ראה׃ | 36 |
to condemn a man [unjustly] in his judgment, the Lord has not given commandment.
| מי זה אמר ותהי אדני לא צוה׃ | 37 |
Who has thus spoken, and it has come to pass? the Lord has not commanded it.
| מפי עליון לא תצא הרעות והטוב׃ | 38 |
Out of the mouth of the Most High there shall not come forth evil and good.
| מה יתאונן אדם חי גבר על חטאו׃ | 39 |
MEM. Why should a living man complain, a man concerning his sin?
| נחפשה דרכינו ונחקרה ונשובה עד יהוה׃ | 40 |
NUN. Our way has been searched out and examined, and we will turn to the Lord.
| נשא לבבנו אל כפים אל אל בשמים׃ | 41 |
Let us lift up our hearts with [our] hand to the lofty One in heaven.
| נחנו פשענו ומרינו אתה לא סלחת׃ | 42 |
We have sinned, we have transgressed; and thou hast not pardoned.
| סכתה באף ותרדפנו הרגת לא חמלת׃ | 43 |
SAMECH. Thou has visited [us] in wrath, and driven us away: thou has slain, thou has not pitied.
| סכותה בענן לך מעבור תפלה׃ | 44 |
Thou hast veiled thyself with a cloud because of prayer, that I might be blind,
| סחי ומאוס תשימנו בקרב העמים׃ | 45 |
and be cast off. AIN. Thou hast set us [alone] in the midst of the nations.
| פצו עלינו פיהם כל איבינו׃ | 46 |
All our enemies have opened their mouth against us.
| פחד ופחת היה לנו השאת והשבר׃ | 47 |
Fear and wrath are come upon us, suspense and destruction.
| פלגי מים תרד עיני על שבר בת עמי׃ | 48 |
Mine eye shall pour down torrents of water, for the destruction of the daughter of my people.
| עיני נגרה ולא תדמה מאין הפגות׃ | 49 |
PHE. Mine eye is drowned [with tears], and I will not be silent, so that there shall be no rest,
| עד ישקיף וירא יהוה משמים׃ | 50 |
until the Lord look down, and behold from heaven.
| עיני עוללה לנפשי מכל בנות עירי׃ | 51 |
Mine eye shall prey upon my soul, because of all the daughters of the city.
| צוד צדוני כצפור איבי חנם׃ | 52 |
TSADE. The fowlers chased me as a sparrow, all mine enemies destroyed my life in a pit without cause,
| צמתו בבור חיי וידו אבן בי׃ | 53 |
and laid a stone upon me.
| צפו מים על ראשי אמרתי נגזרתי׃ | 54 |
Water flowed over my head: I said, I am cut off.
| קראתי שמך יהוה מבור תחתיות׃ | 55 |
KOPH. I called upon thy name, O Lord, out of the lowest dungeon.
| קולי שמעת אל תעלם אזנך לרוחתי לשועתי׃ | 56 |
Thou heardest my voice: close not thine ears to my supplication.
| קרבת ביום אקראך אמרת אל תירא׃ | 57 |
Thou drewest nigh to my help: in the day wherein I called upon thee thou saidst to me, Fear not.
| רבת אדני ריבי נפשי גאלת חיי׃ | 58 |
RECHS. O Lord, thou has pleaded the causes of my soul; thou has redeemed my life.
| ראיתה יהוה עותתי שפטה משפטי׃ | 59 |
Thou hast seen, O Lord, my troubles: thou hast judged my cause.
| ראיתה כל נקמתם כל מחשבתם לי׃ | 60 |
Thou hast seen all their vengeance, [thou hast looked] on all their devices against me.
| שמעת חרפתם יהוה כל מחשבתם עלי׃ | 61 |
CHSEN. Thou hast heard their reproach [and] all their devices against me;
| שפתי קמי והגיונם עלי כל היום׃ | 62 |
the lips of them that rose up against me, and their plots against me all the day;
| שבתם וקימתם הביטה אני מנגינתם׃ | 63 |
their sitting down and their rising up: look thou upon their eyes.
| תשיב להם גמול יהוה כמעשה ידיהם׃ | 64 |
Thou wilt render them a recompense, O Lord, according to the works of their hands.
| תתן להם מגנת לב תאלתך להם׃ | 65 |
THAU. Thou wilt give them [as] a covering, the grief of my heart.
| תרדף באף ותשמידם מתחת שמי יהוה׃ | 66 |
Thou wilt persecute them in anger, and wilt consume them from under the heaven, O Lord.
